Existing methods for reliably testing the presence and performance of a vehicle's audio system speakers or drivers during the vehicle assembly process typically rely on remotely controlling the mode and fade/balance settings of the radio outputs such that each of the audio system drivers may be evaluated. U.S. Pat. No. 5,361,305 discloses an automated system and method for automotive audio testing wherein a computer control system is coupled to the vehicle's data bus via a diagnostic connector. The computer is used to control the radio parameters as well as an RF generator that is operative to broadcast predetermined tones which are coupled to the radio antenna base. A microphone is used in the vehicle to detect tones from the radio drivers and a decoder analyzes the tones to determine whether the tone is correct according to a predetermined baseline. A computer program is used to select certain drivers for testing by remotely adjusting the fade and balance controls accordingly until all drivers have been tested.
Although the '305 patent presents a method of testing a vehicle's audio system that obviates the need for having an operator manually control the radio to test the performance of the audio system and drivers, the invention is only applicable for use with an audio system which is operative to be coupled to a vehicle data bus whereby certain parameters may be controlled remotely via a computer system.
The present invention seeks to provide a method of testing a vehicle audio system that does not require manual or automatic adjustment of the audio system parameters during testing such that systems not designed to be remotely controlled via the vehicle's data bus may be tested in a reliable and efficient manner.